Tacos transcend culinary genres at Austin food carts

A Touch of Fire serves up Asian fusion cuisine on Barton Springs Road.

Mobile food vendors have been on the rise in Austin for a number of years now, lining city streets to serve hungry patrons from food carts and trucks and converted Airstream trailers.

Though food options vary from vendor to vendor, the taco, once reserved for restaurants of the Tex-Mex variety, has been making fusion-filled appearances at a variety of local carts. Here are some of the best:

A Touch of Fire

Located across from the Palmer Event’s Center, this food truck prepares spicy pan-Asian dishes such as Pad Thai, Thai Fried Rice and Thai Tacos. The Thai Tacos are served with spicy beef, onions and cilantro and are stir-fried with a special dressing and wrapped in a small flour tortilla.

Location: 801 Barton Springs Rd.

Price: $4 for two tacos

Chi’Lantro BBQ

Chi’lantro BBQ combines Korean and Mexican staples kimchi and cilantro to create a unique, aromatic and spicy flavor. Taco options include spicy pork, chicken or beef on a double-layered corn tortilla with onions, cilantro, Chi’lantro’s salsa roja and shreds of Korean soy vinaigrette salad. Kimchi can be added to any taco for some spice.

Try a taco with a side of kimchi fries, Chi’Lantros own special French fry recipe featuring fries smothered in cheese, caramelized kimchi, onions, cilantro, Korean peppers, your choice of meat and a spicy sauce that resembles chipotle mayonnaise.

Location: It’s a roaming food truck–find them on Fifth Street and Colorado on Friday and Saturday nights.

Price: $2 per taco, $5 for kimchi fries

The Mighty Cone

This SoCo staple truck serves everything on its menu in a paper cone. Chicken, avocado and shrimp are breaded in a mix of sesame seeds, almonds, arbol chili flakes, cornflakes, sea salt and sugar, wrapped in a tortilla with fresh-made cole slaw and smothered in a spicy orange sauce with a mayonnaise base.

The Mighty Cone’s Hudson Dog also comes on a tortilla, wrapped around a spicy venison sausage topped with coleslaw.

Location: 1600 S. Congress Ave., on the corner of S. Congress Avenue and Monroe Street. Located next to other food carts like Hey Cupcake.

Price: $4.95 for a Chicken or Avocado Hot ‘n’ Crunchy Cone

Izzoz Tacos

Izzoz Tacos serves tacos and tortas out of the largest food truck in Austin. The trailer is located on First Street next to the Texas School for the Deaf athletic fields. Here you can enjoy unique taco combinations such as the Portabella Shroom, with portabella mushrooms, caramelized onion, lettuce, tomato and chipotle aioli served on a flour tortilla. Sample their meat with The Padre, a flour tortilla filled with braised carnita pork, avocado and pineapple salsa.

In addition, breakfast tacos such as the Bac-Spin with bacon and spinach are available all day.

Location: 1207 S. First Street

Price: $2 for breakfast tacos, $2-6 for savory tacos